Sticky-Notes
by Bookwormbybee
Summary: Annabeth Jackson thought it would get easier. But the pain of losing her husband remains fresh in her mind. The sticky-notes and her stubborn daughter aren't making it any easier to move on.
1. Part One

**I wrote this a looong time ago so I decided to post it here as well. It's an old writing style. and I had to force myself not rewrite the whole thing before posting it on here XD** **Anyways I hope you enjoy it.**

 _Part One_

Annabeth woke up alone. But that was normal, at least; it had been for nearly a year now. With a sigh she threw off her covers and reached for the clock to check the time. But in doing so, she got a good look at the photo on her nightstand.

Her fingers trembled as she picked up the framed picture. Percy had been so handsome in his tuxedo. He'd even combed his hair for the ceremony. Annabeth remembered how much he'd insisted on wearing a bow-tie, even though she'd begged him to wear a normal one. Now she chuckled at the memory, scolding herself for being so silly. She hadn't remember when this particular picture was taken. Then again, Sally had taken a lot of pictures that day.

Annabeth felt her eyes moisten and she quickly set the picture down and stood up. She then busied herself with getting ready for the day. She walked into the bathroom to do her hair and make-up when she saw it: A blue sticky-note, stuck on the mirror at eye-level. It said:

 **I love you Wise Girl! (Smiley Face) Have a great day at work!**

Annabeth's eyes blazed with anger. "Thea!" She called "Thea get in here!" A small head covered in long dark-blonde hair peaked through the doorway. "Yes mom?"

Annabeth whirled on her seven-year-old daughter, grabbing Thea's arm and pulling her forward. "What did I tell you about doing this?" She indicated the sticky-note. "What did I say?!" Thea's sea-green eyes filled with tears. Annabeth remembered how insistent she'd been on naming their daughter Athena; to appease her mother's disapproval of Annabeth's marriage to Percy. It had been Percy that started calling her Thea.

"Mom I told you! It wasn't me, it was Daddy!" That was her default reply for whenever Annabeth confronted her. "Don't lie to me Thea! I told you not to keep making these! You need to stop okay?"

Thea stomped her foot in defiance.

"I'm _not_ lying mom! It was Daddy!" Annabeth's patience finally broke. She grabbed her daughter's shoulders. "Your father is _dead_ Thea! He's dead and you doing this will not bring him back understand? It-it won't..." Annabeth broke into sobs. It had been eleven months, but the pain of losing Percy was still heart-wrenching.

 **The final part _Part Two_ will be up next week!**


	2. Part Two

**Here it is! Yay!**

Ever since Thea lost her father she's had the disillusion that he was still here. She put blue sticky-notes around the house, just like Percy used to do before he left for work. They would be sweet little messages for Annabeth and Thea to find when they woke in the morning.

The Psychologist said that it was Thea's way of avoiding the fact that her father was gone. But no matter how hard Annabeth tried she couldn't get Thea to stop, or catch her in the act.

"Mommy?" Thea cupped her mother's tearful face in her small hands. "Daddy's still here. He never even left, you just lost him. And he says he's sad because you gave up on him. Even when he'd never give up on you. Like when the Manticore took you away! He never doubted, never stopped searching for you."

Annabeth gasped. Percy and she had agreed to never tell Thea about their lives as Demigods, not unless it was absolutely necessary. "Who...who told you that? Was it your cousin Thalia?" Thea shook her head. "I told you mom! He's still here! He told me, just yesterday. But you just can't see him!"

The memory hit her like a cold bucket of water.

 _They had been on one last mission with friends. And Percy had angered the wrong Immortal. He was rewarded with a curse:_

To watch, as his existence was forgotten. To behold but never hold. To speak but never be heard. To be there, but never seen.

 _He had simply faded away. He'd "died" in her eyes._

"Daddy's still here."

Annabeth lurched to her feet and ripped the note off the wall. It was Percy's handwriting. How had she never noticed that before?

 _Percy is still here._

 **So... I lied, accidentally. Whoops! I'm sorry. There's still one more part that I dug up.**

 **Sheesh. This is _so_ cringey. Maybe I'll rewrite it eventually... Idk.**


	3. Part Three

**Last one! Sorry for the Delay!**

Eight months. He thought.

That's how long since Percy had been able to actually _see_ Annabeth. The first three months were incredibly painful. He could see her. See her pain, her tears, and her heart-break. And yet nobody could see him. It was like he was a ghost. No, he was something else, at least ghosts could go to the underworld. But near the end of those first three months Annabeth started to fade.

He couldn't see her anymore. And that was even more painful.

Everything confused him at first. He wasn't a spirit, he knew that because he could touch things. So he had substance. But the moment Percy tried to touch someone, he passed through them as if they weren't even there, as if they were a ghost. He'd even tried to talk to the rest of the seven, but couldn't. Being children of the Underworld, only Hazel and Nico were convinced he was still alive. They'd done their best to tell everyone but nobody would listen. They were all convinced that he was dead.

After seven months Percy tried to kill himself. He was living a nightmare and the only escape should have been death right? Well he soon found out that he couldn't die. The curse wouldn't let him. He's get a few scrapes and bruises but Death wouldn't take him. So he devoted his time to keeping an eye on his daughter. He'd talk to her, but she couldn't hear him, nobody could.

Thea would talk to him sometimes. While looking at the stars, she'd tell him how much she missed him. And would ask if she would ever see him again, and what was it like in heaven? Then just two months ago. He came into her room to watch over her as she fell asleep. She looked at him. Really actually _looked_ at him.

"Daddy?"

Thea could see him. But Annabeth still couldn't, and he couldn't see her.

That's when he started writing the sticky-notes, trying to get Annabeth's attention. But it didn't work. It never worked. He never got a reply, and Thea's reports were... disheartening.

With a sigh Percy stood up and walked over to the window. It was raining. He used to like the rain. It reminded him of the sea and his father. Now it just depressed him, reminding him of better days. His note-writing has declined this past week. Normally he wrote about five a day. Now it had decreased to one every day or so. It was discouraging, Annabeth never replied, never even realized he was here. She wouldn't even believe Thea.

He went to check on his latest note. It was gone. So had Annabeth grabbed it? She probably threw it out, just like all the other ones. He turned to leave when something caught his eye. A green sticky-note was there stuck on the mirror, just where the other one had been.

He touched it gently with his fingertips as he read the words:

 _I love you too Seaweed Brain._

Percy's vision blurred with tears. He pulled the note away from the wall and held it tightly, afraid that it wasn't real. He re-read the small sentence over and over again as if it would disappear at any moment.

But it didn't. It was real, and it was Annabeth's handwriting. A sob of relief and exhaustion escaped Percy's lips. After so long he could hardly believe it.

The tears flowed freely now. All the pain he'd felt for the past months emptied itself out. He was no longer alone. His beautiful wife and daughter were there for him.

He got to his feet and grabbed his stack of blue sticky-notes. He tore off the top one and proceeded to write a quick note, his tears smudging the ink. He stuck it onto the mirror and waited.

 **And that's it! thanks for reading! leave a comment an let me know what you think!**


End file.
